My name is Leah Mangue (pronounced MANG). I'm an artist, as may be evident by the pages of this site.
I was born in Santa Maria, California (famous for Tri-Tip!) two days before the Beatles kicked-off their first U.S. tour at the Cow Palace in San Francisco, CA.
From Santa Maria, we made a short stop in Lompoc, CA, then a "big" move to Santa Barbara. Santa Barbara is a wonderful seaside town nestled into the base of the Los Padres National Forest and the Santa Ynez mountain range. Santa Barbara is a gorgeous city known for its Spanish influenced architecture, art, and year 'round mild climate...a superb place to be raised. I took a short break in 1986 and traveled to Barcelona, Spain (only steps from Gaudí's Parque Guell/Parc Guëll) to live and work, then returned to Santa Barbara to go back to school. I remained in Santa Barbara until 1998 when I moved to my current home in Palm Desert, CA in the Coachella Valley.
Santa Barbara, Barcelona, and Palm Desert have a few things in common - all are known for their mostly mild climates, beautiful bodies of water and/or mountains, palm trees and the most incredible views. They are also partially responsible for my love of art since each of these cities has a rich history of art and artists.
My mother told me that one of the few activities that kept me fully entertained, from toddlerhood onward, was a box of crayons and paper. That never left me, though I prefer the more tailored colored pencil to crayons. My exposure to arts, culture, animals and nature at an early age was almost certainly the catalyst for my artistic exploration and what ultimately shaped my career as an artist.
My focus as a professional entity (full-time since 2000) has been on animals (domestic and wild), but I enjoy drawing all manner of subject matter ranging from floral and landscape to fantasy and science fiction (pop culture) illustration, I am also an official licensed artist for and including Star Wars, Indiana Jones, Heroes, Lord of the Rings, Doctor Who and many others.
I work entirely in colored pencils, graphite and Copic/Prismacolor markers at my studio in Palm Desert, CA.
Thank you for visiting!
Leah Mangue
